The Congress-CPI(M) war of words on issue of backwardness of poll-bound West Bengal intensified today with the AICC seeing nothing wrong in Rahul Gandhi's statement on "two Bengals" and saying the situation in rural areas of the state was "pathetic".
The party said the Left was merely juggling with figures while the reality is that rural Bengal is very backward.
"It is a fact that rural Bengal is deprived of basic amenities. If you travel in these areas, you will see how backward they are. This has happened during the long rule of the Left in the state," party spokesman Shakeel Ahmed told reporters here.
Gandhi during his rally in West Bengal had described Purulia as one of the most backward parts of the country and said there exist two Bengals -- one for the rich and another for the poor.
The CPI(M) reacted sharply to the statement with an editorial in the CPI(M) mouthpiece People's Democracy saying, "some parts of West Bengal like Purulia had been described as the most backward in the country. A comparison of the socio-economic indicators of Purulia with those in Rae Bareli and Amethi will tell the real story,"
It said the number of people below the poverty line in Purulia is 31% compared to 54% in Rae Bareli and Amethi.
"Likewise, families with electricity were 29 compared to 14; per capita expenditure is Rs 461 compared to Rs 385; vaccinated children 84 compared to 16; neo-natal deaths 46 compared to 83 per thousand; and fatality below five years 89 compared to 160 per thousand," the editorial claimed.
Ahmed said he did not know from where the CPI(M) was getting those figures and was in no position to comment on their authenticity.
"The party is good at juggling figures," he said. The spokesman however, added that though the situation in rural West Bengal was "pathetic", rural India in general needed improvement.
Hitting back at the Congress, CPI(M) Sitaram Yechury said these were the official figures.
"This is from the National Sample Survey Organisation. This is in the Volume III. If you go through the latest one you will get all these figures. They are the Government of India's own figures," he said.
